The Walking Dead: That Fire Lake Sequence Involved no CGI
For fans of The Walking Dead, the midseason premiere kicked off 2016 with an explosive return, an over-the-top near-celebration of its core characters, as everybody came together to fight for their new home.
In one particular scene, Daryl and Glenn fill a lake with gasoline, followed by Daryl shooting an RPG straight at it, creating a wall of flames. As it turns out, that wasn't CGI, but instead a practice in practical effects that the crew on the show has become popular for.
In a featurette on the scene, AMC producers and SFX supervisors discuss how the effect was creaed.
Using pontoons full of propane, SFX supervisor Darrel Pritchett gave them the start needed to set the effect in motion. "You're actually firing this weapon, and using real fire in the lake? I love doing stuff like that, you know?" actor Norman Reedus said. "You can actually feel the heat!"
The extras playing walkers had to have layers of additional safety equipment as they followed the light and walked towards th flames.
"We're all dorks that want to see this sow be the best that it can, so we all huddle around the monitors to see the explosion," Steven Yeun, who plays Glenn, said. "And we go, 'Woah! That's awesome!"
Source: Comicbook
